17. Preventive action to be taken by the law and order machinery.

17. Preventive action to be taken by the law and order
machinery.
(1) A District Magistrate or a Sub-divisional Magistrate or
any other Executive Magistrate or any police officer not
below the rank of a Deputy Superintendent of Police may,
on receiving information and after such inquiry as he may
think necessary, has reason to believe that a person or a
group of persons not belonging to the Scheduled Castes or
the Scheduled Tribes, residing in or frequenting any place
within the local limits of his jurisdiction is likely to commit
an offence or has threatened to commit any offence under
this Act and is of the opinion that there is sufficient ground
for proceeding, declare such an area to be an area prone to
atrocities and take necessary action for keeping the peace
and good behaviour and maintenance of public order and
tranquility and may take preventive action.
(2) The provisions of Chapters VIII, X and XI of the Code
shall, so far as may be, apply for the purposes of sub-
section (1).
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(3) The State Government may, by notification in the
Official Gazette, make one or more schemes specifying the
manner in which the officers referred to in sub-section (1)
shall take appropriate action specified in such scheme or
schemes to prevent atrocities and to restore the feeling of
security amongst the members of the Scheduled Castes and
the Scheduled Tribes